Results last week: Sept. 9 at Illinois State Invitational (Men’s cross country – No. 6 out of nine teams; Women’s cross country – No. 6 out of 10 teams)

How they ran: Looking to build on an impressive showing at the Flames/Flyers Challenge on Sept. 3, Loyola’s men’s and women’s cross country teams had some midpack performances propel them into sixth place finishes at the Illinois State Invitational on Sept. 9.

On the men’s side, senior Jake Brown earned a 10th-place finish in the 8K with a time of 25:39.23. Redshirt junior Alex Baker was the closest Rambler to Brown, clocking in at 25:05.62 as he crossed the finish line, earning him 27th place overall. Behind Baker and Brown, senior Chandler Diffee finished 37th with a 26:23.31; junior Peter Schaible came in 44th with a 26:34.20; and first-year Riley DeMeulenaere came in right behind Schaible with a 45th place time of 26:34.50.

For the women, first-year Rita Maurais — who finished sixth at the Flames/Flyers Challenge — led the Ramblers with a time of 18:31.45, placing 25th overall. Sophomore Julia Demko and junior Cassie Bloch were close behind Maurais, with Demko coming in at 18:40.24 and Bloch clocking in about one second later at 18:41.13 — which put them in 30th place and 31st place, respectively. Rounding out the scoring for the women were first-year Laura Bestul, who finished in 42nd with a 19:04.53, and sophomore Erin Falsey, who clocked in a personal-best 19:21.51 to earn 51st place.

What’s next: This week, the Ramblers will prepare for their next race at the National Catholic Championships in South Bend, Indiana, on Sept. 16.